Like most people, Trae Young and the Atlanta Hawks will be mere spectators of the NBA on Christmas Day this year.
To be part of the NBA’s Christmas Day schedule is a badge of prestige for participating teams. It means they are interesting enough to draw millions of eyeballs to broadcast of their games. The Hawks are not quite on that level yet, but Young promises that there will come a day when it’s Atlanta’s turn to play basketball while the rest of the country devour roasted turkeys on dinner tables.
We’ll have a Christmas Day game soon… #JustWait 🙏🏽💯
— Trae Young (@TheTraeYoung) August 8, 2018




The Hawks are coming off a lackluster 2017-18 campaign, wherein they concluded the regular season with a pathetic 24-58 record. Had they lured LeBron James or any other elite free agent to sign with them this offseason, the NBA could’ve included them on its Christmas Day slate. For now, a starting five that features Dewayne Dedmon and Taurean Prince is simply not going to cut it for Atlanta to merit a game on Dec. 25.
Having said that, Trae Young is going to be fun to watch. After a stellar one-year college career in Norman, the former Oklahoma Sooners star is determined to help the Hawks right their ship.
Instead of Atlanta, the NBA have chosen the Boston Celtics, Philadelphia 76ers, Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Lakers, Milwaukee Bucks, New York Knicks, Portland Trail Blazers, Utah Jazz, Oklahoma City Thunder, and the Houston Rockets to provide basketball entertainment on Christmas Day.